EXTRACTS: Illustrators issue 13 © 2015 The Book Palace (96 PAGES in Full edition)

85 ABOVE: Photos of Brooke's sketch books are a recurring ingredient of her blog. ABOVE TOP: 'Benny'. There is a haunting simplicity to much of Brooke's work. will ever change really. Someone who wants to illustrate children’s books needs to make images that connect with kids, that are narrative, and that feel fresh or timeless or hopefully both. And they need to be willing to be professional, work hard, learn the business, and put in a lot of time. PR: What advice would you give to people trying to make illustration their career. BBH: Since my experience is specific to children’s book illustration, I’ll speak to that... My first piece of advice is to join the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. They have chapters and conferences all over the world and their annual international conferences in New York and Los Angeles are something that every aspiring children’s book writer or illustrator should try to attend, at least once. My second piece of advice is if you want to make a career out of illustration, treat it like a profession, not a hobby. A lot of people seem to have the idea that writing and illustrating children’s books is easy and is something they could do in their spare time. In reality creating a book that resonates with kids is something that takes a lot of time and thoughtfulness, just as developing a professional illustration portfolio takes a lot of study and dedication. And third, do your research. If you want to illustrate children’s books, look at every children’s book you can get your hands on. Learn how to put together a book dummy and find out what standard picture book layouts